Computers and great-grandmothers

My 93 year old great-grandmother still thinks that there are little gnomes sitting inside the computer, pushing buttons to make it work. My 5 year old cousin walks around inseparable with her iPad. The past 50-70 years of steadfast scientific advancements completely changed the way humans think and operate. The computer-driven machinery that was invented during this time is absolutely amazing. Airplanes and drones, cars, trains and boats, cash registers, video games, and of course, all sorts of medical equipment!

This weekend we had a full blown medical scare with my great-grandmother because we were afraid that she was having a stroke. After a hectic ride to the emergency room, we thought we had entered a sci-fi movie set. Within less than an hour, a plethora of computer-carts were wheeled into her emergency room space: an admissions computer with online forms and signature pads, a blood sampling cart, an x-ray machine, an EKG cart to take her cardiogram, a separate cart for a heart monitor, an EEG to monitor brain activity. Meanwhile, she was hooked up to the computer that continuously took her vital signs: blood pressure, heart rate, and oxygen saturation.  Then she had to be taken to a separate room for a CAT scan. After analyzing all the data collected, the doctor was able to figure out exactly what was going on.

The controversial part of this story is that the equipment is relied upon so much that most doctors stopped making their own hypothesis of what is going on without lots of testing involved. Since the invention of all these diagnostic machines and tests, doctors listen less to what a patient has to say about their symptoms. Similarly, students nowadays don’t do any math calculations in their heads; they see no point in doing so because they have a phone in their pocket with a calculator.

Here are a few interesting rhetorical questions that I have invented to show the differences between our 2015 digital age and around 40-50 years ago when there was no internet.

Why go to the library to do any kind of research? Wikipedia or a plethora of other online resources is only a click away. Are we relying too much on the computers in this day and age? Do we see our friends often enough, or do we just know what’s going on in their lives from Facebook posts? Do we meet new friends at our favorite restaurant, community activity, or in computer chat rooms or from recommended friends on Facebook? Are we becoming too dependent on the computer for help?

My own answer to most of these questions is somewhere in between the two extremes. There is no way to fly a commercial plane or perform a CAT scan without a computer, and I am grateful to all inventors and researchers who made this a reality.  At the same time, I use my own common sense and brain power when in need to calculate the 18% tip at restaurants or when I organize a chess tournament. I love the progress that computers have given us, but live your life and don’t rely too much on computers. As for my great-grandma, she is much better. I am thinking of taking apart my old computer in front of her to absolutely terminate her idea of gnomes working inside the computer.